Free Gogo Inflight Internet a No-Go for Newer Chromebooks

Google is no stranger to giving Chromebook owners a freebie or two. For example, all new purchases come with a handy 100GB of free Drive storage for two years.

In the US, Chromebook owners also receive Gogo in-flight Wi-Fi passes. Or rather they did; according to the Google Goodies support page the latest crop of Chromebooks are not eligible for the offer.

That sees the ASUS C200, Toshiba 13 and the new Samsung Chromebook 2 among those devices unable to get free in-air Wi-Fi. But will owners of those notebooks actually be missing out?

Going, Gogo, Gone

The Gogo freebie was first offered with the launch of the original Samsung Chromebook way back in 2012 and carried over with subsequent product releases. The promotion gifts American buyers with 12 in-air passes for Gogo’s inflight internet. These can be used on domestic US flights only and are valid until December 31, 2015. The passes have an equivalent monetary value of around $125.

Using the Gogo Wi-Fi sounds easy enough:

Simply connect to the “gogoinflight” WiFi network on any Gogo operated flight within the US. Open your browser and follow the instructions on the screen.

But it seems that the HP Chromebook 14 and the various Acer C720 Chromebook were the last to come with access to the offer. The Chrome Goodies support page states that the latest batch of Chrome OS devices are not eligible for the Wi-Fi passes.

Newer devices not eligible says Google

It’s not all bad news. Anyone plumping for the eight-core Samsung Chromebook 2 or stylish Dell Chromebook 11 still get the rest of the goodies, which includes the aforementioned heap of cloud space plus an extended Google Play Music trial.

Those adamant that they want in-air internet can still buy an older model to take advantage of it, but since the offer expires next year you won’t have that long to make use of it.

While a nice touch to have you’d need to be a very frequent flyer to get the most out of the offer. Its omission is therefore unlikely to dissuade many from buying a newer Chromebook.

We have reached out to Google for comment. We will updated when/if we hear back.

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average people would use this possibly 2-3 times max they don’t travel that often, a mobile carrier plan would be more suitable. That way everyone can use it and it would give more reason to take out a chromebook outside for others to use it and some to ask what the product is..

I didn’t even use my access to gogo on my ChromeBook when I did fly. I heard gogo wasn’t all that speedy, so once we got in the air I connected my phone back to 4G and then ran FoxFi on it. Wifi in the air issue solved.

Josh

And by doing that you broke FAA rules and federal laws lmao. Dont get caught!

Who gets on the internet these days and doesn’t break at least one federal law or another. Almost everyone does it whether they realize it or not. I’m not too concerned.

Kevin

I opened my C720 on a recent flight from Charlotte to Seattle and was planning to pay and it told me at that time that my session was free. What a pleasant surprise. If I am not mistaken, it stated that I had 10 sessions, but I do not remember the exact expiration date. In any event, it’s a nice perk.